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South Korea and Japan Seal New Consultative Mechanism, Reaffirm Denuclearization at Busan Summit

The meetings established ongoing channels for policy coordination intended to persist beyond Shigeru Ishiba’s tenure.

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A member of the Korean Confederation of Trade Unions, wearing masks of U.S. President Donald Trump, protests against Trump's tariff policy on South Korea near the presidential office in Seoul, Tuesday, Sept. 30, 2025. The signs read "Stop investment and Oppose alliance?" (AP Photo/Ahn Young-joon)
Japanese Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba visits the grave of South Korean student Lee Soo-hyun at a cemetery in the southeastern port city of Busan on Sept. 30, 2025, to pay tribute to Lee, who was killed attempting to rescue a Japanese man from a subway train track in Tokyo in 2001. (Yonhap)
Japanese Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba (R) and his wife, Yoshiko Ishiba (L), pay tribute at the grave of South Korean student Lee Soo-hyun at a cemetery in the southeastern port city of Busan on Sept. 30, 2025 in this photo captured from Ishiba's X account. Lee was killed attempting to rescue a Japanese man from a subway train track in Tokyo in 2001. (PHOTO NOT FOR SALE) (Yonhap)

Overview

  • Lee Jae Myung and outgoing Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba issued a joint document creating consultative groups to address low birth rates, aging societies, regional revitalization, agriculture, disaster prevention and suicide prevention.
  • The two governments agreed that relevant ministries will hold regular talks through diplomatic channels to coordinate policies and share best practices, with foreign ministries overseeing the process.
  • Both leaders reaffirmed a firm commitment to the complete denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula and lasting peace, with Lee seeking Japan’s cooperation on his peninsula trust-building approach.
  • They also agreed to closer coordination in a shifting global trade order and signaled cooperation on new areas, including an Arctic shipping route and renewed science and technology exchanges.
  • The Busan summit capped three meetings in under 100 days, restored leader-level shuttle diplomacy, marked the first Japanese prime ministerial visit outside Seoul in 21 years, and served as Ishiba’s final overseas trip before his party selects a successor on Oct. 4.